On Apr 1, 2012, the first F-35A CTOL (Conventional Take Off and Landing) for The Netherlands rolled out of the F-35 production facility.

Known as AN-1, the aircraft that has just left the Fort Worth final assembly line, will be assigned to Eglin AFB, Florida, for training and operational tests of pilots and maintainers. The Dutch Parliament agreed to procure a second test F-35 to be used in the IOT&E (Initial Operational Test and Evaluation) phase.

Under the current plan, The Netherlands should eventually procure 85 F-35s to replace about 65 RNlAF F-16MLUs. In recent years many of the original 213 were sold allready.